


Silly Old Bear

by TheAwkwardStar



Series: Sora-Xehanort Saga [8]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Gen, Not Canon Compliant, just wanted to make something sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-09
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-28 13:14:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13904748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheAwkwardStar/pseuds/TheAwkwardStar
Summary: Kairi and Riku visit the 100 Acre Woods.Set shortly after the events of "Give Me Strength", though it could be a standalone story too.





	Silly Old Bear

"Riku!"

He stopping swinging his keyblade and glanced back one of his best friends, moving his bangs off of his eyes. He still hadn't gotten a proper haircut, even after they decided to stay at Yen Sid's tower. Kairi had a bright smile on her face as she approached Riku. He noticed she was carrying a book in her arms. Once she skidded to a halt, she held out the book for him to see. His eyes widened.

"I did it! I found all of the pages! I went to Merlin's real quick and got it fixed!"

"...Aren't you going to give it back to him?" Riku placed his keyblade against the wall.

Kairi nodded. "But I wanted to show you first."

She looked down.

"I was hoping...maybe we could check it out together?"

Riku frowned. He closed his eyes and shook his head.

"...Not now, Kairi. I'm busy." He picked his keyblade back up and smacked it against a punching bag.

"...What are you doing?" Kairi asked.

"What does it look like? I'm practicing. We need to be prepared for anything." Riku hit the bag again.

"...I saw you practicing this morning, though. Have you even taken a break?"

"Don't need one. I'm fine." Riku set his keyblade down again and started punching the bag with his fists.

"Riku...." Kairi winced, pressing the book against her chest.

"...You really don't need to push yourself."

"...." Riku tensed up and started punching it harder. He suddenly felt a hand on shoulder.

"...It's ok. If you want...we could always talk about i-"

"THERE'S NOTHING TO TALK ABOUT!" Riku hit the bag at full force. The rope holding it onto the roof snapped, sending it flying up then landing with a soft _thud._

Kairi took a few steps back. She lowered her head and a single tear fell from her eye.

"...I-I get it. I'll just...go..." Kairi sniffed and turned around. Riku rubbed his forehead she started to leave.

"...Kairi. Wait."

Kairi glanced over at him. Riku turned around completely and stared at her with a solemn expression.

"...Alright. You win. Let's see what's inside that book." he crossed his arms.

Kairi smiled weakly at him. She set the book down on a nearby table and unlocked it. She motioned for Riku to get closer. He walked over to her and looked down at the book.

"...Ok. How does it work?"

Kairi raised her index finger.

"Just be patient. That's what Merlin told me."

The two of them silently watched the book. After some time had passed, the pages started to glow. Their eyes widened in wonder as the light enveloped them.

\----------

"Think, think...."

A small yellow bear tapped the side of his head, deep in thought. He looked up when he heard footsteps approaching. Two unfamiliar children were looking around with curiosity on their faces. The bear hopped off of his thinking seat and waddled over to them.

"Hello! I don't think I've seen your faces around here before."

They looked down at the bear. The girl's eyes sparked with excitement.

"Oh my gosh! You're so _cute!"_

The boy rubbed his head awkwardly.

The bear chuckled. "Thank you very much, stranger. I'm Winnie The Pooh. Pooh for short. How do you do?"

Kairi grinned and kneeled down to face Pooh more directly.

"I'm doing just fine. My name's Kairi! And my friend here is Riku." she pointed back at Riku, who seemed to be avoiding eye contact with both of them.

"Hello, Kairi. Hello, Riku." Pooh nodded and smiled. "It's always nice to make new friends."

What he said seemed to have gotten Riku's attention at last. He raised an eyebrow at the bear.

"...You already consider us friends? Just like that?"

"Of course!" Pooh chimed. "Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet. So now that we've met, we can be friends now. It's as simple as that."

"There's a little more to it than that..." Riku closed his eyes.

"...But sure. Why not."

Kairi playfully nudged his arm. He opened his eyes and gave her a faint smile.

"Oh! Would you two like to meet all of my friends? They would be very happy to introduce themselves too."

Kairi and Riku exchanged glances. They looked back at Pooh and nodded.

"Sure! We'd be happy to meet them, too." Kairi giggled.

"Follow me, then. I know the way." Pooh waved his paw and started making his way down the forest. Kairi and Riku walked beside him at a steady pace.

Suddenly, something burst through the bushes and pounced on top of Pooh. Kairi put her hands over her mouth as they stumbled for a while and came to a standstill. A small tiger was crouching on top of Pooh's belly.

"Hiya, Ol'buddy ol'pal! What's my favorite Pooh doin' in the forest today?"

"Hello, Tigger. I thought I was the only Pooh you knew."

"Don't be silly! You are the only Pooh I know. Just like I'm the only Tigger!" Tigger pointed at his chest and laughed triumphantly.

Pooh hummed. "Would you be so kind as to let me stand? I was hoping to introduce my new friends to you."

Tigger turned his head and saw Riku and Kairi. He hopped off of Pooh and landed in front of them.

"Hey there! I'm Tigger! That's T-I-double-ger-er!"

"Hi, Tigger. What's got you in a such a good mood?" Kairi asked.

"I'm always in a good mood when I'm bouncin! Hoo hoo hoo hoo!" Tigger lifted up his legs and started bouncing on his tail like a spring.

"What brings you kiddos to the 100 Acre Woods?"

"Well..." Kairi rubbed her arm. "...We wanted to come here to see what our friend did around here."

"Hoo hoo! Another friend? What's his name? I'll bet I can pinpoint some stuff for ya!" Tigger put his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest.

"His name is Sora. Do you know him?"

Both Tigger and Pooh scratched their heads. Tigger's hand suddenly shot up as a lightbulb went off in his head.

"Oh yeah! I remember that little guy! He was a pretty good sport and liked bouncin' too!"

"...Think...think..." Pooh looked down with an intense expression. He seemed upset when he stopped tapping his head.

"Whatsa matter, Pooh? Still havin' trouble rememberin' stuff? Ya almost forgot about me the other day until I bounced on ya!" Tigger tilted his his head.

"...Oh, bother. That name doesn't seem to ring a bell for me." Pooh sighed.

Kairi and Riku gave each other worried looks.

"...Pooh? Tigger? Could you give us a moment? We'll be right back." Kairi grabbed Riku's hand and pulled him away.

"No worries! We'll wait." Tigger chuckled and glanced at Pooh.

"Maybe ya just need a good bouncin' again? It let ya remember _me_ before!"

"...See, I'm not sure it would work the same way. You're a Tigger, and you bounce. A Roo bounces too. A Piglet looks for his friends when he's scared. An Owl will put you to sleep with his stories. A Kanga is kind and motherly. A Rabbit tends for his garden, and an Eeyore loves his tail and makes a house. But what does a Sora do?"

Tigger rubbed the back of his neck. "...Saya, Pooh Bear, I think you're right! I never saws the little guy's quirk when we first met, or even after that! I wonder what it is..."

Meanwhile, Kairi and Riku seemed to have been overhearing what Pooh and Tigger said. They were quiet for a few minutes.

"...Riku. I think we should help jog Pooh's memory."

Riku raised an eyebrow. "...He'll remember eventually. It's not a big deal."

"But it is a big deal! How could you even say that...?" Kairi winced.

"...Don't you want him to remember Sora?"

Riku grimaced.

"...He's better off not remembering. How are we supposed to explain that Sora's gone missing if he does? We can't do that to him."

"So you think hiding the truth is any better?!" Kairi huffed. "...I can't believe that this is coming from YOU, of all people! You're the one who always reassured him that there were always people who cared about him, and now you want to take that away?!?"

"Kairi, enough!" Riku shouted. He shook his head amd looked away.

"...I can't do this right now. And if you can't take that, I'll just leave."

"...Fine. Suit yourself. But I'm going to help Pooh remember, and I'll reassure him that Sora _isn't_ gone." Kairi placed her hand on her chest.

"He's right here. With _us._ And _nothing_ can take that away." Kairi spun around and marched over to Tigger and Pooh. Her demeanor immediately relaxed as she spoke with them and they started leaving together. Riku sighed and reluctantly went after them.

They spent the next few hours meeting the rest of Pooh's friends, trying out everything each of them enjoyed doing to see if it would restore his memory.

Piglet gave Pooh the biggest, reddest balloon he could find, but nothing happened aside from him floating up into a tree and Riku having to bring him back down. Pooh helped Eeyore fix his house while Kairi reattached his tail, adding an extra ribbon for fun. Eeyore seemed to like the addition, but it did nothing for Pooh's memory. Owl told Pooh the story of his great-great-grandfather's nephew Reginald III, which made Pooh sleep after only two minutes. When he woke up, he still couldn't remember a thing. Roo and Tigger got Pooh to bounce for a bit, and Kanga gave him a medicine that he thought was rather nasty. Kairi and Riku groaned as Pooh told them there was _still_ nothing.

"I could use a small smackerel of honey, though. There's a rumbly in my tumbly after having that strange medicine." Pooh rubbed his belly.

"How about we go visit Rabbit, then? He has l-lots of honey!" Piglet said.

"That's a very good idea, Piglet. Perhaps Rabbit's honey will help me with remembering...Somebody-I-Don't-Know."

"It's Sora, Pooh Bear." Kanga gave him a sincere smile. "You _must_ remember how sweet he was, despite being awfully upset about his missing friends. The poor dear...."

Kairi and Riku looked at each other. Kairi pouted and turned her head away from him. Riku rubbed his head, knowing that she was clearly still upset with him from earlier.

They soon made it to Rabbit's house, where Rabbit himself was watering his vegetables and checking them to see how ripe they were. Tigger pounced on him, nearly crushing a pumpkin in the process.

"Hiya, Rabbit! How are ya?"

"I would be doing much better if you _got off."_ Rabbit narrowed his eyes.

Tigger hopped off of Rabbit. He stood up and dusted himself off, then noticed everyone else that was there. His ears perked up when he saw Kairi and Riku.

"Who are they?"

"They're Pooh Bear's new friends, Kairi and Riku!" Tigger patted Rabbit on the back. "And they're friends with Sora, too!"

Rabbit crossed his arms. "...Hmm. Now that's a name I haven't heard in a while." He glanced up at Kairi and Riku.

"How is Sora doing, by the way? Since you two are here, it must mean that he finally found what he was searching for."

"...Not exactly." Kairi looked down in disappointment. "...Sora....is missing."

 _"Missing?!"_ The stuffed animals exclaimed. Pooh looked very confused.

"But we're searching for him right now!" Kairi waved her hands. "Just like he was looking for us. We'll find him again."

"...Bother..."

Kairi and Riku turned to Pooh.

"I simply cannot remember why, but that makes me sad to hear."

Everyone looked at Pooh Bear with distress. Rabbit tapped his fist against his other hand.

"Right! Let's get you all the honey you like, Pooh! Before I end up regretting it!"

"Thank you, Rabbit." Pooh smiled.

Pooh and the others went inside Rabbit's house. Both Riku and Kairi needed to crouch to fit properly. Rabbit gave Pooh the first pot of honey, which he finished in two seconds flat. He continued to eat, and eat, and eat....until none of the honey pots were left. Rabbit was absolutely mortified by his impossibly infinite appetite, but if it was for Pooh's memory...he was willing to sacrifice his honey at least once.

"...Well...that's all of it." Rabbit facepalmed. "Pooh, do you remember Sora now?"

Pooh smacked his lips as he wiped honey off of his face.

"...Oh! I think I have something!"

They all stared at Pooh with a hopeful gleam in their eyes.

"...Wait. It's gone." Pooh lowered his head. Kairi and Riku sighed.

"...It's alright, Pooh." Kairi winced.

"...Riku....maybe you were right. Maybe we should just let him remember on his own...if he even can."

Riku turned his head away. "......"

"Sorry for all the trouble, Rabbit." Pooh stood up and headed for the exit, which was a small hole. "I supoose we'll have to try again later."

"Ohhhh...." Rabbit slumped his shoulders.

Pooh climbed into the hole and started crawling his way inside it. But once he was halfway through, he suddenly got stuck.

"Oof!" Pooh placed his hands on either side of hole and started to push himself forward, while they watched him kicking his feet from the inside of the house.

"...Oh my. I seem to be in quite a pickle."

"Confound it, Pooh!" Rabbit stomped his foot. "If you knew you were too big to fit in the hole, why did you go through it?!"

"I'm sorry. I'll keep trying to get unstuck." Pooh tried again, but to no avail. Rabbit groaned.

"I have an idea!" Kairi stood up a little, nearly bumping her head on the roof.

"Why don't we all try pushing him out, while one of us pulls him from the outside?"

Riku raised his hand a little. "...I'll pull. You guys handle this." He left the house before Kairi could get a word in. Kairi huffed in frustration.

Riku approched Pooh and kneeled down, then grabbed each of Pooh's tiny paws.

"Stay calm. We'll get you out of here."

Pooh nodded and smiled. "Thank you, Riku. You're a very good friend."

A ghost of a smile formed on Riku's mouth. He shook his head as he started to pull.

"Ok! Now!" Riku yelled.

Rabbit cleared his throat. "Ready, steady...PUSH!!!"

Kairi and the others shoved forward with all of their strength. Pooh popped out immediately, propelling Riku backwards as all of the force transferred to him and the bear. They tumbled down a small hill until the back of Riku's head rammed into a tree.

Kairi and the others ran out of the house and headed up the hill. Kairi gasped when she saw Riku at the bottom, lying against a tree. Pooh seemed to be safe from any harm as he got out of Riku's lap and poked his cheek.

"Riku!" Kairi made her way down the hill, with the others following closely behind. Pooh continued to poke Riku's cheek until his eyes fluttered open.

"Ugh....." Riku pressed his hands against the back of his neck.

"Riku, are you ok?" Kairi kneeled down to face him.

"Yeah. I'm lucky I didn't hit that tree any harder." Riku stood up shakily, then looked at Pooh.

"How about you? Anything broken?"

Pooh shook his head. "I'm alright, thanks to you. Sora always said that you were the strong one."

Both Riku and Kairi blinked, staring at Pooh in disbelief.

"Pooh! You remember him?!" Kairi's eyes lit up.

"Of course I do. I could never really forget a friend." Pooh waddled over to a small bridge that was nearby and looked down at the water. Riku and Kairi walked over and stood on either side of him.

"We played Pooh Sticks here. It feels like it was just yesterday when we did.

\----------

_Sora and Pooh watched as the current moved a pair of small sticks down the river. Sora pointed at them._

_"...Hey, I think mine is winning!"_

_"I do believe you're right, Sora. Piglet's stick seems to be catching up, though."_

_"Oh, d-d-dear....will you be upset with me if I win?" Piglet tugged at his tiny ears._

_"Come on, Piglet. Of course not. You'd be winning fair and square." Sora patted Piglet's head._

_"Well I think mine's gonna win!" Tigger grinned._

_"...I guess you could believe that. Though it doesn't really matter, since you're way behind." Eeyore let out a long sigh._

_"Hey! Don't be such a sourpuss!" Tigger huffed._

_"Cheer up, you guys! You're definitely past me!" Roo chimed._

__

__

_"...Thanks for noticin'." Eeyore put his head on the wood._

_Owl let out an astonished hoot. "I say! Mine has snapped!"_

_"Unfortunately, so has mine...." Rabbit mumbled._

_Sora laughed a little and looked down at the water. He frowned when he noticed his reflection._

"...Pooh?"

"What is it, Sora?" Pooh tilted his head.

_"...When I leave...I might not be able to come back here again."_

_"Then don't leave. I would miss you very much if you had to go away forever."_

_Sora smiled bitterly, putting his head on top of his arms._

_"I don't have a choice. My friends....they need me." He lifted his head and clenched his hands._

_"The only way I can help them is by using things I don't like to use. They only come out when I'm scared, or sad....or **angry."** He placed a hand on his head._

_"...I hate being like this. But I'm willing to do it just to see them again. I don't care what happens to me."_

_Pooh blinked slowly, contemplating what Sora said._

_"...There's something an old friend used to tell me whenever I was unsure of what to do. That I'm braver than a bee, stronger than a seam, and smaller than a fink."_

_"Ha ha, what?" Sora grinned nervously and rubbed his head._

_"Oh, for goodness sake..." Rabbit inhaled sharply. "You're mixing it all up!"_

_"Oh bother. Would you be so kind as to remind me?"_

_"I'll start!" Piglet raised his hand. "I-if that's ok...."_

_Pooh nodded. Piglet took a deep breath._

_"You're braver than you believe!"_

_"Stronger than you seem!" Tigger flexed his arms._

_"And smarter than you think." Rabbit tapped the side of his head._

_"That's right." Pooh smiled. "And from what you said...I can tell that you're very brave, strong, and smart. Why, no one could help your friends like you can. So don't be sad or afraid. Just be yourself."_

_"....'Myself'. I still don't know who that really is."_ Sora closed his eyes.

_"...But thank you, Pooh. I won't forget any of of you."_

_"Then I shall do the same, my dear friend."_

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna go quiet for a while after this. The next story will finally be the last, but it's going to be very long. I need time to flesh it out, so bear with me till then!


End file.
